Iowa 2021 Human Trafficking Legislative Update

The NAHT Legislative Advocacy Committee, capably led by Maggie Tinsman began the 2021 legislative year with five priorities which you can access here. Maggie Tinsman hand delivered these legislative priorities on January 14th 2021 to all Iowa legislators. This took place during the NAHT Day on the Hill where Governor Reynolds also signed a proclamation designating January as Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month.

iowa-state-capitolSubsequently, a total of 16 human trafficking related bills were filed by Iowa legislators. However, as of the second funnel deadline, only one of the five NAHT priorities passed out of the second funnel. Here is a brief history of the Massage Anti-Trafficking Bill that escaped the second funnel (the NAHT 5th ranked out of 5 legislative priorities).

HF 452 (Formerly HSB 34) An Act relating to certain civil and criminal enforcement activities involving the practice of massage therapy and cosmetology, and human trafficking. Introduced, referred to Judiciary 01-13-21. Passed subcommittee 01-19-21. Passed committee 02-08-21. Amendment filed 02-23-21. Passed House to 03-08-21. Sent to the Senate. Senate amended and passed 04-06-21. Sent back to the House. The House refused to concur with amendment 04-12-21. Senate removed amendment. Senate passed unanimously 04-28-21!!!

For a full legislative report written by Maggie Tinsman and including trafficking bills still alive but not among the 5 NAHT priorities plus a description of the 2021 bills no longer eligible for consideration this year, tap here.

Recording of the Iowa Sex Trafficking Symposium

Dr. Jordan GreenbaumSome of you may have missed the 2 hour and 15 minute Iowa Child Trafficking Symposium held on April 5th. Dr. Joe Moravec, a member from the NAHT board, organized this outstanding symposium presented by Mercy College of Health Sciences. Dr. Joe reported that 520 people registered for the webinar.

Dr. Jordan Greenbaum, a physician, pictured here, was the keynote speaker and is a nationally recognized expert on child trafficking. One former Network board member, Stephen O’Meara, and one current board member, Teresa Davidson, presented important information and expertise that was specific to Iowa. Two survivors also spoke, including Heather who is on the Network Board of Directors, and Stacy, who received the 2021 Outstanding Anti-Trafficking Service Award last January.

Here is the link to the recording of this symposium: https://mchs.edu/research

Fundraising for the NAHT

George BelitsosDr. George Belitsos, chair of the NAHT Board of Directors, is shown holding up a $1,200 fundraising check from the GiveIowa crowdfunding effort. The Greater Iowa Credit Union (GICU) selected the NAHT as their statewide charity of the month. The funds will be utilized to purchase 2,500 rescue stickers along with anti-trafficking posters to be distributed statewide. On behalf of the Network Board, Belitsos thanked the GICU and all the donors for contributing to the Network as the Charity of the month. The NAHT does not receive funding from the state of Iowa. The NAHT has always depended on donations from individuals, service clubs, the faith community, organizations, and businesses.

Facebook birthday gift fundraising has become a new source of support and we thank all of you who have initiated these fundraisers. Another opportunity to help the Network would be to designate the NAHT as your recipient with Amazon Smile. Almost everyone utilizes Amazon to purchase needed goods, and Amazon will make a donation to the charity of your choice. Best of all, your donation does not cost you anything. Simply follow the instructions below to select “Network Against Human Trafficking” as your charity and activate AmazonSmile in the app. They’ll donate a portion of your eligible mobile app purchases to us.

How it works:

  1. Open the Amazon app on your phone*
  2. Select the main menu (=) & tap on “AmazonSmile” within Programs & Features
  3. Select “Network Against Human Trafficking” as your charity
  4. Follow the on-screen instructions to activate AmazonSmile in the mobile app

*You can also sign up online. Open a web browser and go to https://smile.amazon.com. Follow the prompts to select “Network Against Human Trafficking” as your charity.

U.S. Attorney’s Awardee’s Comments

The April 1st NAHT blog post paid tribute to the 5 awardees of the 2021 Outstanding Anti-Trafficking Service Award. The U.S. Attorney for the U.S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa, Rich Westphal, accepted the award on behalf of the Office. Several blog subscribers have asked for the information shared by the U.S. Attorney after he accepted the award. The information follows:

  • In 2020 the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children noted that they received 17,000 reports of child sex trafficking with an average age of 15 years old.
  • By the statistics, Iowa is in top 10 in the nation when it comes to new case convictions of child sex trafficking.
  • 144, 210, 268, 348 – number of months that Iowa child sex trafficking defendants have served in federal prison sentences starting in 2020

Social Work and Health Care Provider Human Trafficking Training Opportunity

The Postgraduate Institute for Medicine and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in collaboration with the National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Center (NHTTAC) are offering free 2-hour live SOAR to Health and Wellness trainings that teach providers how to identify and respond to human trafficking. For more information about the trainings, click a date below:

COVID-19 Continues to Increase the Global Number of Trafficking Victims

Since the start of the pandemic, the NAHT has been alerting Iowans about how COVID-19 has resulted in an increase in the number of trafficking victims.

Below are four ways COVID-19 continues to impact human trafficking both here in Iowa and globally.

  1. Increased Vulnerabilities – Unemployment, financial instability, and global lockdowns lead to increased vulnerability for people everywhere.
  2. Increased Online Exploitation – More young people are home from school and spending time online unsupervised, making teens and children more vulnerable to grooming and recruitment than ever before.
  3. Traffickers have Changed their Tactics – Traffickers moved their tactics online to platforms like social media and online gaming to recruit and exploit vulnerable young people without leaving their homes. Additionally, traffickers targeted adult men and women with financial vulnerability through false job advertisements.
  4. Decreased Victim Identification – Victims trapped in exploitation were less likely to be identified due to global lockdowns and higher travel restrictions, making our national and Iowa human trafficking hotlines the primary source of help for many victims caught in human trafficking.

Twenty Years of Progress in the Anti-Trafficking Movement

Last year marked the 20th anniversary of the federal Trafficking Victims Protection Act. Prior to the passage of the Act, the United States relied on traditional laws prohibiting involuntary servitude; however, these laws often fell short of addressing modern day forms of slavery/human trafficking.

This landmark congressional legislation recognized the importance of protecting victims, holding traffickers criminally accountable, and preventing victimization from occurring in the first place. It also provided clear legal definitions of both sex and labor trafficking.

The Act helped build a framework for collaboration among federal agencies to coordinate anti-trafficking efforts. From public awareness campaigns, enforcement, prosecution, and services for victims, the Act has led to remarkable progress in combating human trafficking.

In the 20 years since the Act was signed into law, programming through the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) has grown significantly. The Office for Victims of Crime is the largest federal funder of services for human trafficking victims in the U.S. They now manage more than 400 grant awards, totaling over $270 million dollars, in 46 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. territory of the Northern Mariana Islands. Three Iowa nonprofits are currently OVC grantees.

From July 2019 through June 2020, the Office for Victims of Crime human trafficking grantees provided services including case management, legal services, employment assistance, and safety planning to 9,854 survivors.

Watch the Human Trafficking Capacity Building Center video and visit the Center’s new website to learn more.

Information, Articles, and Resources

By on April 30, 2021   /   News  
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